Arizona weekly citizen., 1887-03-19
STRANGE FANCIES.
QUEER STORIES OF PEOPLE SANE
 ON ALL POINTS BUT ONE.

Producing Authorizations at Pleasure.
 An Actors Power-A Horror of Dirt
 New Workers Mania-The Initiative
 steward-The 'JumPers."
 Brewster, in his letters on Natural Magic relates an experience of New ton which shows that any one has the power to produce hallucinations at his pleasure. This philosopher, after having regarded for some time the image of the sun in a looking glass, was much sur prised, on directing his eyes toward the dark part of the room, to see spectcr of the sun reproduced bit by bit, until it shone with all the vividness and all the color of the real object. The hal Inclination afterward reoccurred when ever he was in the dark The same phenomenon takes place when person looks fixedly at a window in strong light and then at a wall; a spectral win dow, with its panes and bars, soon pre- sents itself.
 Talma, the great French actor, said that when he entered upon the stage be was able. by the power of his will, Go banish from his sight the dress of his numerous and brilliant audience and Co substitute in the place of these living per sons so many skeletons When his i'm agination had thus filled the theatre with these singular spectators the emotions which he experienced gave such an i'm pulse to his acting as tO produce the most startling effects.
 have known men Co imagine that they had gold brains, silver liyers and crystal sfonachs. and the latter would swallow no l,wa lsf h.4 Enfn brittle organ. There is an authentic case on record of a man who thought himself s teapot. and always went about at home and on the street with one arm held out at right angles and the other akimOo, walked sideways. and made a hissing noise like a teapot boiling. Nothing could con vince him to the contrary. For many years it was the only symptom of insanity he showed, but eventually he died In an asylum for tho insane.
 Speaking of hallucinatiOnI, I have ln mind just now a lady, one Of the best actresses in this country, who has such horror of dirt that it has become almost mania with her. In washing her hands she uses at least five bowls of water. uses a towel but once, and that, when it leaves the laundress, must be locked up lest any human hand should touch it. Her tooth brush is always under lock and key. Every morning it takes her over an hour tO bathe, using at least three tubs ot water. She dimes in no restaurant where she has not the privilege of examining the kitchen snd questioning the cook. Her one hobby is water. always call her an aquamaniac. know very charming gentleman. a prominent business man, who not for Eanderbilt's wealth would cross any | every endeavOr to get him to cross the ferry from New York to Brooklyn, and only succeeded once-by drug-ing him. He cannot tell why, but as soon as the boat is on the point of starting he has a feeling as if he were about to die. a cold precipitation breaks out all over hin. his knees shake, and a stranger looking at him would think he was about tO Colapsg. This has been going on for about eight years In everything else he Is perfectly sane; at home he Is charming in every respect. He has consulted the most emi- nent physicians of New York, but tO no avail
 Recently I read of most interesting tourney made by Lieut. Buckingham and others of the United States navy. While fin Siberia they were walking on the banks of the Ussilri river, when he Ob- served a messmate, who was a captain of the general stall of the Russian army. ap- pTolch The captain of the boat suddenly, and without any apparent reason, clapped his hands before his face. Instantly the steward clapped his hands in the same manner, put on an angry look, and passed on. The incident was somewhat curious. as it involved a degree of intimacy with the steward hardly, in such country. tO be expected After this they observed a number of queer performances of Inc steward, and finally c0mprehendel the sit- nation. IL seemed that he was afflicted with peculiar mental Or nervous disease which forced him tJ initiate everything suddenly presented Co his senses. Thus when the captain slapped the paddlebox suddenly in the presence of the steward. the latter instantly gave it a similar thump. or if any noise was made suddenly he seemed compelled against his will Co initiate it instantly and with remarkable accuracy. To annoy him some of the pas sengers initiated pigs gruntiug Or called out absurd uames, others Clapped their hands and shouted, jumped or threw their hats on the Gcck ,uIdelly. and the poor steward, suddenly stIrtlcl. would initiate them all precisely, and sometimes several cOnSecutively. Frequently he would beg people not tO startlc him, and again grow furiously angry. but even m the midst of his passion would helplessly repeat some ridiculous shout or motion directed at him by his pitiloss tormentOrs. Frequently he would shut himself up in his pantry, which was without windows. and lock the door: but even there he could be heard answer ing the shouts gruuts or sounds on the bulkhead outside He was a man of mid dle age, fine physique. rather intelligent in facial expression. and gave not the slightest visible indication of his disability.
 could go on writing about such eases until l exhausted my readers patience, but l shall close by relating a few of the habits of the sect called the Jumpers. or Jumping Frenchmen, that have a Commu- !, nifty near MoOsehcad lake. Me l am in ,,-,.,ed to the late Dr. Beard for the par .a',a ,5t found that whatever order s,.. r,;,.or % %,hcr,a,they at once Obeyed. Thus, one of the Jumb9pIn" io " Si ,'s si',--, , on a chair with knife in hi,pV.s-, -, told to throw it. He threw it quickly-sL that it stuck in house opposite At the same time he repeated the order to throw it with a cry Of alarm not unlike that of hysteria or epilepsy. He also threw away his pipe. which he was filling with tobacco.
 
 Two Jumpers sitting near each other were told to strike, and they struck each other very forcibly. When a Jumper is told tO strike, he strikes; when told Co throw. he throws whatever he may happen Co have in his hand. Dr. Beard tried their powers of repetition with the first part of the first line Of Nirgils ''-Eneid' and the first part of the first line of lINmer'S "Iliad. % and out of the way words in the English Ian gusge with which the Jumpers could not have been familiar. He repeated or echoed the sound of the words as they came Co him in a quick, sharp voice. All Of the Jumpers agreed that it tired them to jump. and they dreaded it. but could not resist the command.-New York Mirror
 Sir Arthur Sullivan has gone into the business of composing anthems Co be sung at American weddings.